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Caozhao mudan pu 曹州牡丹譜

Jan 11, 2014 © Ulrich Theobald

i>Caozhao mudan pu 曹州牡丹譜 is a book on peonies written during the Qing period 清 (1644-1911) by Yu Pengnian 余鵬年 or Yu Pengfei 余鹏飛 (fl. 1792), courtesy name Bofu 伯扶. He hailed from Huaining 懷寧, Anhui, and obtained his juren degree during the Qianlong reign 乾隆 (1736-1796). He was a famous poet, painter and cultivator of flowers.

In his short book, Yu describes 56 kinds of peonies, with a focus on colours. He also explains seven common methods of cultivation common in the region of Caozhou 曹州 (modern Caoxian 曹縣, Shandong). This city, like Bozhou 亳州, Anhui, belonged to the centres of flower cultivation during the Qing period. The book was finished in 1792 and printed a year later. It is to be found in the series Hezhai congshu 鶴齋叢書, Jiayongxuan congshu 嘉詠軒叢書 and Congshu jicheng chubian 叢書集成本. Is is also published as an appendix to the agricultural book Shouyi guangxun 授衣廣訓 in a lithographic edition from 1929.

Sources:
Wang Yuhu 王毓瑚, ed. (1964). Zhongguo nongxue shulu 中國農學書錄 (Beijing: Nongye chubanshe), 238.
Wu Feng 吳楓, ed. (1987). Jianming Zhongguo guji cidian 簡明中國古籍辭典 (Changchun: Jilin wenshi chubanshe), 779.
蜀漢 (221-263)